Stern Pinball today announced a special re-themed version of the WhizBang Pinball's Whoa Nellie! Big Juicy Melons game.

The new The Pabst Can Crusher game is themed on the iconic Pabst Blue Ribbon (PBR) beer, and Pabst will be promoting the game at a number of their merchandising and sponsored events.

The Pabst Can Crusher backglass

The game features all-new artwork by Dirty Donny Gillies featuring a typically highly-stylised design and many cameos, such as the band Red Fang who provide the music for the new game.

The Pabst Can Crusher also eschews the weathered wooden cabinet and legs in favour of a more modern design. However, it retains the score reels, backglass light indicators and the electromechanical essence of Big Juicy Melons.

The cabinet shape is also retained from the WhizBang game.

Left cabinet side

The front of the game

Right backbox side

The playfield design is unchanged from Big Juicy Melons but the artwork is as busy and colourful as the backglass image.

Can Crusher's playfield

The top of the playfield

The top of the playfield

The bottom left of the playfield

Stern Pinball have not announced whether The Pabst Can Crusher will be available for retail sale, and if so whether it will be sold through Stern's regular distribution channels. Nor have they revealed how many Can Crusher machines will be made or any potential price point.

The bottom right of the playfield

Here's what Stern Pinball had to say about the game, although the announcement appears to be credited to Pabst Brewing Company instead.

The new PBR machine will make its debut at Comic-Con International in San Diego on July 21st through July 24th at booth 501. The game was developed in partnership with Stern Pinball, Inc., the world's oldest and largest producer of arcade-quality pinball machines

The “Can Crusher” pinball machine captures the iconic nature of the PBR brand with a retro game design,dynamic eye-popping art by artist and pinball phenomenon Dirty Donny Gillies and music by hard-hitting heavy metal band RED FANG.

The debut of this machine will not stop with its arrival at Comic-Con. Following Comic-Con, PBR will showcase the exclusive machine at several other venues including concerts, barcades, high profile events, and other community activities.

“To partner with Stern Pinball on the ‘Can Crusher’ and have a superstar artist like Dirty Donny and music from Red Fang was exactly what we set out to do when we wanted to make a pinball machine the PBR way. The game does a great job of capturing the essence of our brand,” said Pabst CMO Dan McHugh.

About Pabst Brewing Company

With over 30 beers in our portfolio, Pabst Brewing Company is the largest American-owned brewery. Since 1844, we’ve taken pride in brewing beers that have become iconic, cherished American brands. Brands that promote regional pride, and brands that express common bonds amongst people all over the world.

Pabst is honored to be part of so many lives. We work tirelessly to provide worthy products and memorable experiences in local communities. Loyalty is hard to come by these days. Being your beer of choice is a great privilege, which is why we deliver nothing less than award-winning taste and quality.

Stern Pinball, Inc., headquartered just outside Chicago, Illinois, is the oldest and largest producer of arcade-quality pinball games in the world. Stern’s highly talented creative and technical teams design, engineer and manufacture a full line of popular pinball games, merchandise and accessories. Recent Stern titles include Ghostbusters, Spider-Man Vault, Game of Thrones, KISS, WWE WrestleMania, The Walking Dead, Mustang, Star Trek, Metallica, The Avengers, X-Men, AC/DC, Tron, Transformers, Avatar, Iron Man, Batman, and many more! All of Stern’s pinball games are crafted by hand and assembled by Stern’s expert team. A broad range of players enjoy Stern’s games from professional pinball players that compete in high-stakes international competitions around the globe to novice players who are discovering the allure of the silver ball for the first time. To join the fun and learn more, please visit http://www.sternpinball.com/

The central playfield area

We'll have all the latest news about The Pabst Can Crusher right here at Pinball News.